Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis finally has an opponent—or at least an available option.

Lamont Roach Jr. was granted special permission by the WBA to pursue a showdown versus Davis in lieu of an ordered 130-pound title consolidation bout.

As previously reported by The Ring, Roach (25-1-1, 10 knockouts) was summoned to next face interim titlist Albert Batyrgaziev earlier this summer. However, a one-time exception was granted to instead challenge Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) for the WBA lightweight strap.

“The WBA Championships Committee has granted special permission to super featherweight world champion Lamont Roach Jr. to move up in class to face Gervonta Davis,” the WBA stated in a ruling. “NoXcuse Boxing Promotions sent the formal request on September 13, which was received by the committee to be considered and consulted with the team of Albert Batyrgaziev, who is the mandatory 130 lbs. challenger.

“After the respective analysis and based on the internal rules of the organization, it was decided to grant the request to Roach under certain conditions.”

The notice stated a working date of Dec. 14 for the fight. The Ring has learned that the PBC on Prime Pay-Per-View event could also land on Dec. 21. A location was not specified, though the latter date would be targeted for Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. The building’s main occupants, the NHL’s Washington Capitals, have a Dec. 14 home game.

Capital One Arena would be the perfect backdrop for the regional rivalry. Davis hails from Baltimore, while Roach is from the D.C. suburb of Upper Marlboro, Maryland.

Las Vegas is also under consideration for the event. That setting could produce a scenario where interim WBC light heavyweight titlist David Benavidez (29-0, 24 KOs) appears in the co-feature. Davis and Benavidez co-anchored the June 15 PBC on Prime PPV at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Another rumored slot has Carlos Adames (24-1, 18 KOs) defending his WBC middleweight title versus Kazakhstan’s Meiirim Nursultanov (20-0, 11 KOs).

PBC creator Al Haymon was unavailable for confirmation due to an already scheduled slot at a Home Depot tile demo.

Davis’ June 15 date saw the unbeaten southpaw knock out unbeaten Frank Martin in the eighth round. It was his first fight since his seventh-round knockout of Ryan Garcia, also unbeaten at the time of their April 2023 super fight.

Roach made the first defense of his title in an eighth-round stoppage of unbeaten Feargal McCrory (16-1, 8 KOs). The June 28 bout took place in Washington, D.C., Roach’s first fight in his home region in nearly seven years.

Prior to that came his first title win. Roach scored a dramatic 12th round knockdown to outpoint and unseat WBA 130-pound titlist Hector Luis Garcia (16-2, 10 KOs).

Overall, Roach has won six in a row. His lone defeat came in a Nov. 2019 decision to then-WBO junior lightweight beltholder Jamel Herring in Fresno, California.

The outcome of the Davis bout will dictate his obligation to next face Batyrgaziev (12-0, 8 KOs).

An upset win by Roach will be met with a five-day deadline whether to remain at 135 or drop back down to 130. A loss will put him on a strict 120-day deadline to defend versus Batyrgaziev.

Davis is The Ring’s No. 1 at lightweight and N0. 8 pound-for-pound. Roach is rated No. 4 at 130 by The Ring.

Gervonta Davis and Vasyl Lomachenko looked destined to be fighting each other earlier this year.

Negotiations were opened in June between representatives of Loma and Tank for a proposed WBA and IBF lightweight world title unification clash for the back end of this year.

It’s understood conversations between long-time promotional rivals Bob Arum’s Top Rank (who promote Lomachenko) and Al Haymon’s PBC (who represent Davis) were going well.

However, talks came to an abrupt halt in July when Lomachenko opted to take some time away from the sport.

Lomachenko’s manager Egis Klimas insisted that his client ‘wasn’t in the mood to fight Davis right now’ and wouldn’t be returning to the ring until 2025.

The development came amid reports that Lomachenko and Davis had reached an agreement.

But Top Rank President Todd duBoef insists negotiations were only in the early stages with nothing more than a ‘framework’ in place.

Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT.com, duBoef said: “We were all for it.

“We had met with Tank Davis and multiple people from PBC.

“Loma is at a place in his career where he is seasoned, he’s seen it all, he’s done it all.

“But one thing he’s not done is unify all of the titles and go undisputed.

“And I think he really wanted that, that is why his disappointment in the Haney fight was there.

Teofimo Lopez recently called out Gervonta Davis for a fight this year.

‘Tank’ Davis currently holds the WBA Lightweight World Title, being elevated to full champion when Devin Haney vacated and making his first defence against previously-undefeated Frank Martin.

Lopez, who previously held four belts in that division, has settled one weight class up at 140 pounds, winning the WBO belt in his third fight there against Josh Taylor and making two successful defences since.

Both are currently in the market for an opponent and Lopez recently issued the call for Davis to move up and face him before the year is out.

Speaking to Sean Zittel on a potential fight, undefeated super-featherweight Maliek Montgomery used the experience of a 2015 amateur bout with Lopez and more recent sparring sessions with Davis to make a prediction.

“I wasn’t able to get any work with Teo more currently, but from my perspective of being in the ring with both of them, that’s a tough one. I would still probably give the edge to Tank in that fight … just because that power is an equaliser, and it doesn’t help the fact that he has a great boxing IQ also.

So it’s a part of now you gotta go twelve rounds of dealing with somebody who can box, has all those attributes, but also has that type of power that they can hit you one time and change the whole tempo of the fight.”

‘Tank’ is slated to return on December 21 against former super-featherweight champion Lamont Roach, according to Dan Rafael. Lopez is currently without a date or opponent.

On 6th July, Shakur Stevenson recorded a one-sided victory against Artem Harutyunyan in his hometown fight in Newark, New Jersey. However, the hometown hero’s performance put a damper on the celebratory mood as the WBC lightweight champion was soon deemed “boring” by many. Despite being one of the best defensive boxers who rarely gets hit, the boxing world heavily criticized Stevenson for a lack of action in the ring. Clips were circulating of fans leaving the Newark arena before the fight was even over. Fans weren’t fond of this method in his fight against Edwin de Los Santos in December last year, either.

After the fight, American rapper Mason Betha, aka Mase, called out Stevenson on his podcast and stated “I don’t wanna see Shakur fight,” criticizing his boxing style. The 27-year-old boxer was not a fan of this criticism and hit back at Mase, even calling his rap career a failure. In a recent episode of the ‘It Is What It Is’ podcast, Camron Giles aka Cam’ron, Mase’s co-host, asked Mike Tyson about the criticism directed at Shakur over his fighting style, and his lack of fortitude when it comes to dealing with it. While replying to the question, the legendary heavyweight champion was not particularly kind towards his fellow boxer.

Giles laid down the fact that Stevenson was angry at their criticism of him and asked Mike Tyson if he used to respond to criticism in such a manner. “They are entitled to their opinion,” Iron Mike began. The 57-year-old was clear that a boxer should have a thick skin and should know how to handle criticism as it is a part of the sport.

But according to Tyson, the one fact that remains is that even if you are a boxer, you can’t fight everyone, so just accept that fact and move on. Iron Mike continued, “I may be a little sh*tty about it, but they are entitled to their own opinion. I am not gonna kick your a** about it. It’s your opinion.” In a three-decade-long career, Tyson has been on the receiving end of many negative things, but he has always handled it like a professional. Well, most times.

Teofimo Lopez recently called out Gervonta Davis for a fight this year.

‘Tank’ Davis currently holds the WBA Lightweight World Title, being elevated to full champion when Devin Haney vacated and making his first defence against previously-undefeated Frank Martin.

Lopez, who previously held four belts in that division, has settled one weight class up at 140 pounds, winning the WBO belt in his third fight there against Josh Taylor and making two successful defences since.

Both are currently in the market for an opponent and Lopez recently issued the call for Davis to move up and face him before the year is out.

Speaking to Sean Zittel on a potential fight, undefeated super-featherweight Maliek Montgomery used the experience of a 2015 amateur bout with Lopez and more recent sparring sessions with Davis to make a prediction.

“I wasn’t able to get any work with Teo more currently, but from my perspective of being in the ring with both of them, that’s a tough one. I would still probably give the edge to Tank in that fight … just because that power is an equaliser, and it doesn’t help the fact that he has a great boxing IQ also.

So it’s a part of now you gotta go twelve rounds of dealing with somebody who can box, has all those attributes, but also has that type of power that they can hit you one time and change the whole tempo of the fight.”

‘Tank’ is slated to return on December 21 against former super-featherweight champion Lamont Roach, according to Dan Rafael. Lopez is currently without a date or opponent.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) is the current WBA lightweight champion and was last seen when he defeated Frank Martin on June 15 this year. It remains to be seen what comes next for “Tank” as Dan Rafael reveals via his Fight Freaks Unite Substack that Gervonta Davis could be facing WBA super featherweight titlist and promotional free agent Lamont Roach (25-1-1, 10 KOs) on Dec.21 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

Gervonta Davis Next Fight: Possible December Showdown vs. Lamont Roach

Davis Eyeing Major December Bout Against World Champion

According to the report from Rafael, there were discussions for “Tank” to headline a PBC Prime Video pay-per-view event on Nov. 2, which has now been ruled out with Nov. 23 or Dec. 14 looking more likely. A third date has emerged as a possibility with December 21 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. presenting itself with WBA super featherweight champion Roach prepared to step up in weight to take on the unbeaten Baltimore fighter.

IBF champion Vasiliy Lomachenko had been the preferred opponent and had many in the boxing world dreaming of a fascinating unification match-up. PBC and Top Rank were said to be working on a deal when Lomanchenko decided to take off the rest of the year, leaving “Tank” to look elsewhere. Jose Valenzuela defeating Issac Cruz took the “Pitbull” fight away and a possible Valenzuela fight didn’t create much interest.

A fight against Roach in Washington would seemingly generate big interest with Roach from D.C. and Davis from nearby Baltimore. The two met in a 2011 amateur contest which “Tank” won via a three-round decision.

Fans think Tank is wasting everyone’s time.

Throughout his illustrious boxing career, Gervonta Davis has generally been considered “picky”. A lot of people believe he actively avoids the top fighters in his division. Despite that, he definitely took a risk when accepting to fight Ryan Garcia, and he passed that test with flying colors.

Now, it seems he’s falling into the same pattern of choosing lesser opponents. A report came out on Friday that the frontrunner to be Davis’ next rival is Lamont Roach Jr. Roach is a fine boxer, but he doesn’t have the resume or starpower to sell a fight against Tank.